Oklahoma State University Athletics
11 National Championships
In front of an orange-heavy crowd totaling over 3,000, the Oklahoma State golf team shut out No. 6 seed Alabama, 5-0, Wednesday afternoon in the NCAA title match at Karsten Creek Golf Club. The win sealed up the storied program's 11th all-time national championship.
"I have never seen an atmosphere like this," head coach Alan Bratton said. "I am so proud again for our Oklahoma State family and Cowboy golf. This is bigger than just Cowboy golf. Our fans, they turn out. They did that in a big way. I'm glad the world got to see it, and I'm glad these guys got to live it. It is certainly not about me, it is about all of those players and all of the former players we had. I can't tell you how many former players we had in the crowd this week. All of us were standing on their shoulders this week."
The Cowboys' victory was the first win by a team that won the stroke play portion of the tournament since the inception of match play at the event in 2009. It also marked the first-ever shutout in a national title match. Wrapping up one of the most historic seasons in the sport's history, OSU became the first team with 10 wins and a national title in a season since 1977.
The Pokes got on the board shortly after the turn as Zach Bauchou routed Jonathan Hodges, 8 and 7, to put OSU up, 1-0. Bauchou was outstanding throughout the round, carding a 29 on the front nine to carry a 7-up lead into the turn thanks in part to a chip-in eagle on the ninth. The Cowboy junior followed it up with a par to win the 10th and another par to square the 11thand lock up the match.
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"I played really well today," Bauchou said. "All aspects of my game. I struggled with my driving throughout the week. Today I came out and was hitting nice fades off the tee so I was putting the ball in play, and my iron play was really good. The strength of my game is my putting. I got a little heat with my putter. I made a bunch of one-putts in a row and that sets the pace for the day, which is really nice."
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Sophomore Viktor Hovland was the next player on the board for OSU with a 4-and-3 win over Alabama's Lee Hodges. Hovland sank a birdie to win the first hole as the first Cowboy on the course and never looked back, stretching his lead to 4-up with a birdie on 14 before a par to halve the 15th and clinch the win.
A roar erupted from the 15th green as freshman Matthew Wollf drained a 12-foot birdie putt for the Cowboys' third point. With the putt, Wolff dispatched of Alabama junior Davis Riley, 4 and 3, to ensure the championship trophy.
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"I had been putting good all day," Wolff said. "I'd been hitting my lines. I knew I have been having confidence and everything was feeling really good. Me and my coach picked a spot and he just said right before I hit the putt, 'It's just like the first hole of the day'. When I made that eagle putt and it gave me a lot of confidence and I shouldered it right in."
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As the match was clinched, Kristoffer Ventura locked up a 4-and-3 triumph over Wilson Furr. After reaching the turn trailing, 1-down, Ventura turned it on by taking the next four holes to inflate his lead to 3-up.
Freshman Austin Eckroat led, 1-up, over freshman Davis Shore through 13 as the match was clinched. Eckroat and Shore battled it out on the front nine, but Eckroat was able to win the ninth with a birdie to give himself a lead he would not relinquish.
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OSU claims its first NCAA Championship since 2006 and the school's 52nd overall across all sports. With the win, Bratton becomes the fourth OSU coach to lead the Cowboys to a national title, joining the likes of Mike Holder, Mike McGraw and Labron Harris. The Cowboys have also finished second or better at the event an impressive 28 times.
2006 National Champions
Oklahoma State's men's golf team fired a 5-under 283 team total during Saturday's final round at the NCAA Championship at Crosswater Golf Club to earn the school's 10th national title and first since 2000.
The Cowboys, who finished with a 9-under total of 1,143, were fueled by the school's eighth individual national champion in redshirt freshman Jonathan Moore, who became the first OSU player to grab medalist honors since Charles Howell in 2000.
The title also marked the fourth time in school history the Cowboys have walked away with both the team and individual champion at the event. OSU also swept the honors in 1978, 1987 and 2000.
The Cowboys finished three shots ahead of runner-up Florida, which posted the day's low round with a 9-under 279, to end play with a 1,146 total. Minnesota and Wake Forest tied for third place at 1,147.
"I can't really put it into words right now," first-year OSU head coach Mike McGraw said. "The disappointment we felt after the conference championship was so deep, but these guys came back and changed their season by realizing you can't take winning for granted."
For Moore, who posted a final-round 69 to finish at 12-under 276 and four shots clear of the field, the tournament capped a remarkable run to close out the season. The victory was the third in a row for the Vancouver, Wash. native, who extended his string of consecutive rounds under par to 10 and finished 34- under par during that three-tournament stretch.
"I thought the pressure was just going to be unbearable in the beginning," Moore said. "But I just got out there and felt really calm. I'm just happy to be with these guys - they work really hard and they have great drive. They motivate me and it's just exciting to help them. That's all I wanted to do today was help these guys."
Moore began the day with a one-shot lead over Wake's Kyle Reifers, but took control of the individual race early with birdies on three of his first four holes. After bogeys on Nos. 12 and 15 moved him back to 1-under for the day, he rebounded with a birdies on Nos. 16 and 18 to seal the victory.
"It's just so great. I don't think this would be anywhere near as special if the team hadn't won," Moore said. "That's the whole reason why you come here. You try to win as a team and if that means winning as an individual helps, that's great, but you do whatever it takes."
Sophomore Pablo Martin posted a 1-over 73 during his final round to finish alone in fifth place, posting a 72-hole total of 282, 6-under. The finish marked the 11th time in 12 starts this season the Malaga, Spain native has finished in the top 10. Martin's top-five showing also signaled the first time since 1987 the Cowboys have had two players finish in the top five at the national tournament.
Senior Zack Robinson closed out his collegiate career with a solid even-par round to finish tied for 45th place at 5-over 293. The Ft. Worth, Texas native was 2- over on the day with eight holes remaining before posting a pair of birdies down the stretch to get back to level par.
"It's like a dream come true. It's your last college round and you have a chance to win a national championship, you can't ask for more," Robinson said. "The whole week is such a battle. Every hole and every shot is a grind emotionally and physically and I was able to stay calm. I kept telling myself to be patient and good things would happen."
Junior Tyler Leon saved his best round of the tournament for the final day, carding a 73 to move into a tie for 57th place at 8-over 296. The Dallas, Texas native put together a round that included four pars down the stretch to get to his score.
Freshman Trent Leon matched Moore for the squad's low round of the day with a 69 to move up 12 spots into a tie for 62nd place at 9-over 297. The Dallas, Texas native put together a round that included five birdies to give him his first round in the 60s since his final-round 68 at The Maxwell.
Following the event, Martin was named the winner of the Jack Nicklaus Award as the nation's top player and Moore received the Arnold Palmer Award, which is presented annually to the NCAA individual medalist, and the Phil Mickelson Award as the nation's top freshman. He is the second consecutive OSU player to be tabbed as the country's best freshman as Martin won the award last season.
Team Scores1. Oklahoma State - 1143*
2. Florida - 1146
3. Minnesota - 1147
3. Wake Forest - 1147
5. Kentucky - 1153
2000 National Champions
Despite entering the final round with a three-stroke lead over the Texas Longhorns, OSU needed seven birdies in the final five holes to pull even with hard-charging Georgia Tech.
In the playoff, OSU carded four pars and a birdie for one under par compared with Georgia Tech's one over par. The Cowboys' lone birdie came from true freshman J.C. DeLeon, who sank a side-hill 8-foot putt to secure the victory. Charles Howell set the all-time NCAA scoring record (23 under par) and cruised to an 8-stroke victory over Houston's Chris Morris in the individual race to become OSU's seventh NCAA Individual Champion.
Team Scores
1. Oklahoma State - 1116*
2. Georgia Tech - 1116
3. Arizona - 1118
4. Houston - 1122
5. Texas - 1125
1995 National Champions
OSU produced a miraculous comeback in what appeared to be a two-team race between defending national champion Stanford and Texas. The Cowboys made up a seven-stroke deficit late in the fourth round with five birdies in the last three holes to force the first playoff in NCAA Championship history.
Bratton and Cox posted birdies on the extra hole, while Tidland and Kuehne carded pars to give OSU the victory and the school's eighth national golf title. Westerberg, who had left for the airport to catch a plane to compete in the British Amateur, did not participate in the playoff. While Bratton was the NCAA runner-up in 1994, Tidland duplicated that feat in 1995.
Team Scores
1. Oklahoma State - 1156*
2. Stanford - 1156
3. Texas - 1157
4. Arizona State - 1164
5. Southern California - 1165
1991 National Champions
OSU battled rough windy conditions in the first round and led after two rounds, before seeing North Carolina grab the third-round lead. OSU made up a three-stroke Tar Heel lead, including two strokes on the final nine holes to earn the golf team's seventh and the school's 40th overall national title.
For the 21st time in the last 22 years, OSU produced at least one top-10 individual finisher as Craig Hainline tied for fourth and Scott De Serrano tied for 10th.
Team Scores1. Oklahoma State - 1161
2. North Carolina - 1168
3. Arizona State - 1175
4. Wake Forest - 1180
5. Brigham Young - 1185
1987 National Champions
OSU's 1987 NCAA title came on familiar territory, the Scarlet Course in Columbus, Ohio where the Cowboys won the championship in 1980. OSU's sixth championship, a 16-stroke win over Wake Forest, was bolstered by a trio of top-10 finishes.
Brian Watts captured the individual title, becoming the fifth of seven OSU medalists at the event, and led the Cowboys to a 16-shot victory margin. Three OSU players placed in the top six. E.J. Pfister, who tied for 65th would become OSU's third straight NCAA individual champion in 1988.
Team Scores1. Oklahoma State - 1160
2. Wake Forest - 1176
3. Oklahoma - 1177
4. Ohio State - 1185
5. Houston Baptist - 1186
1983 National Champions
The 1983 NCAA Championship took the Cowboys to Fresno, Calif., where OSU defeated Texas by seven strokes for the school's fifth title.
OSU freshman Scott Verplank tied for first individually through 72 holes but lost a four-way playoff to Jim Carter of Arizona State and tied for second place in leading OSU to its fifth NCAA title. Verplank would win an individual title his senior year. Three Cowboys finished among the top 25.
Team Scores1. Oklahoma State - 1161
2. Texas - 1168
3. Houston - 1170
4. Ohio State - 1173
5. Clemson - 1176
1980 National Champions
The Cowboys claimed their fourth NCAA Championship and their third in five years at Columbus, Ohio. OSU entered the final day in a three-way tie with BYU and Ohio State, before shooting an even-par 288 on the final day for a four-stroke victory ahead of BYU.
Utah State's Jay Don Blake won a playoff with Hal Sutton of Centenary for medalist honors, while Rafael Alarcon was OSU's top finisher, two shots back.
Team Scores1. Oklahoma State - 1173
2. Brigham Young - 1177
3. Oral Roberts - 1178
4. Ohio State - 1184
5. Texas Christian - 1184
1978 National Champions
OSU's third golf title came in dominating fashion as the Cowboys outdistanced Georgia by 17 strokes to lay claim to the crown. Eugene, Oregon was the site of OSU's third NCAA Championship as David Edwards won medalist honors in leading the Cowboys to the team title.
The individual race was decided over the first three days of the event as Edwards posted a two-shot victory with a 209 score.
OSU's 17-shot margin was its biggest in NCAA play as all five Cowboys placed in the top 25 individually.
Team Scores1. Oklahoma State - 1140
2. Georgia - 1157
3. Arizona State - 1160
4. Brigham Young - 1166
5. North Carolina - 1174
1976 National Champions
The first national crown for Mike Holder as well as the second for an OSU golf team came at Albuquerque, N.M. in 1976. The Cowboys posted a seven-shot advantage over Brigham Young.
Lindy Miller and Jaime Gonzalez were both two-over par during the four rounds to finish tied for 10th, seven shots behind individual champion Scott Simpson of Southern California.
Team Scores1. Oklahoma State - 1166
2. Brigham Young - 1173
3. Houston - 1174
4. Wake Forest - 1175
5. New Mexico - 1176
1963 National Champions
Oklahoma State's first national golf title came at the Wichita Country Club as the Cowboys claimed a two-round one-stroke victory.
George Hixon led the Cowboys, finishing one shot out of first place after posting a first-round 67 to lead the tournament after one day. Freshman Don Lackey birdied the final two holes to secure the championship. The championship was sandwiched by runner-up finishes in 1962 and 1964 for OSU under Labron Harris.
Team Scores
1. Oklahoma State - 581
2. Houston - 582
3. North Texas - 585
4. Southern California - 587
5. Georgia - 590
